Joe Serevi spends his days ministering, reaching out to gangs and
looking after his wife and children.
Gone are the days of cultivating and selling cannabis, abusing
women, and sleeping on the streets
of Fiji.
Joe, 50, has lived in New Zealand
for 18 years. He met his kiwi wife at

a Salvation Army camp in Fiji and
made the move to New Zealand.
The life he leads now is one he
never imagined for himself, he says.
“I never thought I could be in the
position I am in. If I had of kept
living the life I was before, I don’t
know where I would have ended up,
I would probably be dead.”
Continued on page 2

THROUGH IT ALL: Kilbirnie resident and pastor for Kilbirnie Salvation Army
Joe Serevi has seen both sides of life. PHOTO: Emma Morgan

David & Maria’s
CARPET & VINYL

Now is a good time to
send a scarf, beanie or
gloves to your family &
friends in the northern
hemisphere

THE BEST OF FRINGE: The New Zealand Fringe Festival has opened
for registrations so expect a lot more of this creativity in 2016.
Pictured: Jess Bates PHOTO: Supplied

The New Zealand 2016 Fringe
Festival has opened for registrations.
The festival is set for February
12 to March 5 all across the
Wellington region is calling
for registrations for shows and
events via their website before
October 8.
For three weeks during February and March, this annual openaccess arts festival features over
1,000 artists from around the
country and the world, “including world premieres, new artists
and established companies with
original, cutting edge art.”
Each year the programme carries 100 events staged all over
the city from venues, homes,
galleries, cafes, bars, street
corners, parks and more.
The festival is calling for
anyone or any group wishing to

present work in any art form to
register their interest to be part
of this annual celebration of art
and culture. Event organisers
saying there are no limits, no
constraints. They are happy to
accept audio, podcast, busking,
cabaret, comedy, circus, dance,
improvisation, music, physical
theatre, poetry, puppetry, spoken word, and storytelling, and
theatre, visual and digital art.
The Fringe in Wellington
open-access non-programmed
festival of the arts has been a
constant on the arts landscape
for 25 years, “This in itself is
testament to the fine culture this
city supports and to the original
and exciting works local artists
are continually creating.”
 Register your event and join
the creative chaos that is the
New Zealand Fringe Festival
2016 on www.fringe.co.nz.

Teachings from the Bible and from life
Continued from page 2
Joe left school at the age of 12
to be a farmer. He says despite
his parent’s christian teachings,
he was the “black sheep” in the
family and made the wrong
decisions.
“I was a violent person. I was
an alcoholic and drug addict.
I lived that life for 15 years.”
He grew cannabis to take to
the city to be sold, and there was
rarely a moment he was sober.
“I would drink and smoke
every day. I would wake up
and drink. If I finished a bottle.
I would go and buy another one.”
Even at Sunday morning
service, Joe was drunk in the
bleachers.
“In our culture church is so
important. It didn’t matter that I

was hung-over or drunk.
It was expected I went.”
It took the detachment of his
seven siblings, and a brawl
induced coma to make Joe
wake up.
Ironically, he was standing in
the middle of one of his cannabis fields when he decided to
embrace the christian religion.
“I changed my direction. I
never believed I could get married because everyone was running away from me.
“I have been clean for over 20
years. I tell my story and use
it to help. I am not telling what
the bible says, I am telling my
own story.”
He says the Salvation Army
is his resource for helping to
connect with people and being

NEW LIFE: Joe Serevi was standing in the middle of a cannabis field one
day when he decided to turn his life around. PHOTO: Emma Morgan

active in the community.
“I want to reach the people that
are hard to reach. If we don’t go

MP for Rongotai

to them, they won’t come to us.
I want our community to be a
better place.”

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GOOD CAUSE: Vicky Hale and Volunteer Gim Tan were dressed in BONE APETITE: A lucky dog has his cake and gets to eat it too.
their best to sell cupcakes. PHOTO: Jo Moore Photography
PHOTO: Jo Moore Photography

Cupcakes for a perfect cause
By Emma Taylor

Flour, eggs, butter, milk and
sugar was all it took to raise
more than $4000 for the SPCA
last week.
More than 200 people in the
Greater Wellington Region
donned their aprons and baked
cupcakes for a cause for the
SPCA’s annual cupcake day.
The SPCA cares for around
5,000 animals every year and
thanks to sweet-toothed locals the charity now has much
needed funds to help them do

their work.
The Wellington SPCA, located
in Newtown, held their cupcake
day stall outside Farmers on
Lambton Quay, selling more
than 1000 cupcakes that were
generously donated from various businesses throughout Wellington.
SPCA supporter engagement
manager Victoria Hale says
it was really awesome to see
locals buy cupcakes and donate
generously on the day.
“Seeing and hearing the support from hundreds of Wel-

lingtonians wanting to help the
SPCA and do their part for the
animals was a highlight,” she
says.
“We sold out of cupcakes by
the end of the day.”
Everyone was in the baking
spirit on Monday, with some
staff members from the Ministry of Business, Innovation
and Employment setting up a
stall in a meeting room raising
a whopping $2,187.
25 volunteer bakers from
MBIE put on their aprons and
whisked up more than 700

cupcakes.
The meeting room was completely packed full of people all
morning getting their sugar fix
for the day.
Project manager at the MBIE
Alexa Patterson volunteers at
the SPCA and says she and colleague Stef Isaac wanted to help
the SPCA because they both
love dogs, and also love baking.
We thought we would be there
all day selling cupcakes, but we
were wrong. We had sold 95 per
cent of our cupcakes by 11am,
Alexa says.

Building homes in Nepal
By Fiona Donnellan

If the thoughts of helping
to rebuild Nepal home by
home sounds like something
you’d be interested in read
on. Habitat for Humanity
New Zealand are offering the
“opportunity of a lifetime”
for New Zealanders to travel
to Nepal and help build 100
homes in November of this
year.
“The invitation is open to
any adults who would like to

make a difference for people
who “desperately need a decent place to live,” says Habitat
New Zealand chief executive
Claire Szabó.
The building will take
place for just under a week
in Pokhara, Nepal. Pokhara
is located 200 kilometres
north-west of Nepal's capital,
Kathmandu.
Habitat are seeking a total of
200 New Zealanders to help
with this particular project,
the criteria for individuals isn’t

Shoppers at Island Bay New World
will soon be seeing changes at the
shop as the car park is expanded.
The ‘fish shop’, which is yellowstickered and earthquake-prone, will
be demolished to make way for an
additional 13 car parks
A new retail shop will also be built
on The Parade for a future use.
Angela Bull, from Foodstuffs, says
the construction works at New World
will create a bigger car park enabling
customers to park easily at the store.
Work is expected to be complete by
the end of 2015 and New World Island
Bay will remain open throughout
construction.

Game time
To celebrate UNESCO International
Literacy Day a giant game of scrabble
is set to be held in the foyer of Wellington Railway Station.
Literacy Aotearoa Wellington is
organising the game which will take
place on Tuesday September 8 from
7.30am till 1pm.
In previous years the scrabble game
has been held at Wellington’s Cuba
Mall.
This year Literacy Aotearoa Wellington says it hopes to attract the
attention of morning commuters on
their way into the city.

Supreme award

limiting as all ages and levels
of experience are required
to build alongside Nepali
families and other international volunteers, aiming to
complete the houses in just
one week.
The families set to move
into the newly built homes are
currently living in insufficient
housing and poor conditions
with limited access to water
and sanitation.
No construction experience
is required as each person will

be offered full training and
supervision will be given by
Kiwi team leaders during the
trip. The group of volunteers
will aim to build more permanent homes using treated
bamboo framing and other
simple materials.
“People who've travelled
to previous Habitat builds in
Nepal overwhelmingly tell us
it was a life-changing experience,” says Claire.
 For further information see
www.habitat.org.nz.

Wellington group Letting Space
last week won the supreme award at
the Wellington Airport Community
Awards.
Letting Space gives a hand to startup organisations throughout the city.
Wellington Mayor Celia WadeBrown says Letting Space had supported a number of organisations
that have become success stories and
demonstrated what can be achieved
through participation, innovation
and enterprise.
One example of working closely
with local communities was a large
scale public art project titled Projected Fields at Berhampore’s Macalister Park.

Site blessed
Cardinal John Dew, Archbishop of the
Archdiocese of Wellington, last week
led the blessing of the site of a new
teaching and administration block for
St Catherine’s College in Kilbirnie.
The new 1,160 m2 building is expected
to be completed by mid-2016.
Naylor Love, the main contractor,
expects that more than 100 builders
and sub-contractors will be involved in
the project.
St Catherine’s College is one of five integrated girls’ colleges run by the Sisters
of Mercy’s Tiaki Manatu Ministries Trust.

By Fiona Donnellan

Over 12,800 budding preschool gardeners from around
the country will be taking part
in the 2015 Daltons Sunflowers in Kindergartens Project
which launches this month.
Now in its third year, the
gardening initiative gives
kindergarten children the opportunity to develop some
basic gardening skills. The
scheme also allows kids to
begin learning about the lifecycle of plants. They do this
by growing their very own
sunflower.
Last year over 245 kindergartens in nine regions including
Wellington took part. This
year there are 21 kindergartens
taking part in the Wellington
region and each has been sent
their starter pack.
Daltons General Manager,
Colin Parker, says, “You are
never too young to learn about

Food for thought
In a recent survey by food companies,
it said that 19 per cent of Wellingtonians have a limited repertoire of fewer
than six meals which they repeat each
week. 38 per cent of Wellingtonians
would like more meal variety but are
restricted by tight budgets, while a further 18 per cent of Wellingtonians said
they lack the confidence to trial new
meals. 21 per cent of Wellingtonians
said they almost never sit down with
their family for dinner. And interestingly 31 per cent of Wellingtonians said
they check their cell phones at least
once during dinner.

SUNFLOWERS IN KINDERGARTENS: The project provides learning
opportunities for children to engage in gardening and have a little
fun growing the tallest or widest sunflower along the way PHOTO:
Supplied

gardening. The project has
thrived since we launched it
three years ago and we are
delighted to bring it to even
more regions this year. Our
main goal is that children have
the opportunity to connect
with gardening - the competition component is there for a
little extra encouragement and
fun. These kindy kids will not
only develop gardening skills
and knowledge, practice basic
maths, but also learn about
responsibility as they take care
of their plants throughout the
project.”
Two top tips from organisers
are the importance of keeping
the temperature constant. So
ensure your pots are in a very
warm, sunny location. Also,
they encourage everyone to
create your own mini-greenhouse by taking a 1.5 litre
plastic bottle, cut the bottom
out and remove the lid and
place it over your pot.

Women urged to get smear tests

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Wellington women are being encouraged to consider
their health and make cervical screening a priority this
September.
This month is Cervical
Screening Awareness Month
and the focus is on highlighting the importance of smear
tests and motivating more
Kiwi women to book in for
screening.
Well Women and Family
Trust general manager, Jane
Piper, says cervical smear

tests are short and simple
procedures with a proven
ability to save lives.
“We recommend screening every three years to
reduce the risk of bad cells
developing into something
that could potentially be
life-threatening,” she says.
Cervical cancer is one of
the most preventable forms
of cancer and screening
every three years can reduce
the risk of developing it by
up to 90 per cent.

Jane advises that “By having regular smears, there
is a very high chance any
abnormal cells will be detected and treated before
they become cancerous.”
The National Screening
Unit is encouraging more
women to recognise the importance of cervical screening, and effectively reduce
the number of New Zealand
women who develop cervical
cancer.
Jane says New Zealand has

one of the best screening
programmes in the world,
with the number of women
who die from cervical cancer
dropping by 60 per cent
since 1990.
 To find out when your
next smear is due, either
call your GP or phone 0800
729 729.
For more information about
the national cervical screening programme go to www.
cervicalscreening.govt.nz.

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Te Papa wins on a world scale
Te Papa has been named one of
nine New Zealand destinations in
Lonely Planet’s top 500 places on
the planet.
Experts picked places that they
believe every traveller must experience. New Zealand made the list
a total of nine times, with natural
attractions like national parks,

Stewart Island and Waitomo caves
being acknowledged.
“We are delighted to make the cut
as one of the must-visit destinations in the world,” says Te Papa
Chief Executive Rick Ellis.
“It’s especially exciting to be the
one man-made place in New Zealand on the list.

Student hopes to
wow on the runway
Wellington student Natalie
Seagar will tick an item off
her bucket list this September
when she sees her garment
make its way down the runway.
The Massey University visual
communication design student
is one of the 15 finalists from
the wider Wellington region to
have their garments showcased
at World of Wearable arts.
As someone who cannot sew,
Natalie relied on different
methods and was drawn to
using hard materials such as
using magnets and plastic.
“I knew I wanted to use laser
cutting as my method of making,” she says.

Natalie has created a look
that interacts with the body in
a unique way.
“I have used magnets to enhance its stage performance
quality. Also the way the materials and form uses light
creates a unique architectural
structure.”
As a first time entrant Natalie
says while the production of
her piece was on her mind for
the earlier part of this year,
the actual making process was
reasonably quick.
“This was always my intention to focus on a streamlined
process to create a simple but
striking piece of work.”

Natalie’s garment wowed the
judges at the preliminary round
of judging, which gave her
the boost she needed to keep
going and finish what she had
envisioned.
“Handing in the finished
product was hugely satisfying,
but also a bit nerve-racking,”
she says.
With less than a month to go
before opening night, Natalie
does not have to wait long to
see her piece come to life on
stage.
“Seeing how they have choreographed my garment will
be really interesting, I'm so
excited,” she says.

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Help play your part in keeping New Zealand beautiful is
the sentiment behind CleanUp Week this September
14-20. Community groups,
businesses, schools, families,
friends and individuals are
urged to get involved.
General Manager of Keep
New Zealand Beautiful
Heather Saunderson said,
“Last year nearly 40,000
volunteers took part in 562
events nationwide but Keep
New Zealand Beautiful Week
is not just about the cleanups. These events build and
strengthen community spirit
and allow people to demonstrate their pride in where
they live.”
The campaign's central aim
is to increase community

participation of all kinds, but
also addresses issues of sustainability, the environment,
health, crime and social inclusion.
Last year there were 562
Clean-Up events nationwide,
15,312 rubbish bags and 8,850
recycling bags were collected.
A total of 228 schools, 246
groups and 88 businesses got
involved in the worthwhile
initiative.
Keep New Zealand Beautiful wants to improve on these
facts and figures this year and
promote “litter abatement,
waste minimisation and the
beautification of our towns
and cities.”
 For more information on
Keep New Zealand Beautiful
Clean-Up Week and how to
get involved email info@
knzb.org.nz.

CLEAN
UP CREW:
Last year
nearly
40,000
volunteers
took part
in CleanUp Week
PHOTO:
Supplied

Wellington Pink Star Walk is
back this year and registration is
now open
Now in its second year the Estee
Lauder Companies Pink Star
Walk is happening in October.
Like last year thousands of Kiwis
are set to walk to support the
Breast Cancer Foundation. All
the funds raised from the walk
from Frank Kitts Park along the
waterfront will go towards helping support women with breast
cancer.
Not only that but the money

raised goes towards education
around the importance of mammograms for early detection.
“The money raised by our walkers helps fund rehabilitation programmes for women undergoing
mastectomy, a major surgical
procedure,” said Van Henderson,
chief executive at the NZ Breast
Cancer Foundation. “We’re also
putting more funds into education around the importance of
mammograms, with new tenyear survival data showing that
women whose cancer is found on
a mammogram have much better
survival than those who find a

lump. Seventy per cent of eligible
women currently attend mammogram screening – we want to
see that go a lot higher.”
There are options for participants to take part in the 10km or
5km walk. Even those not set to
walk are asked to get involved and
support and cheer on the walkers.
Organisers say the Pink Star Walk
is always a sight to behold, with
many walkers dressing in pink
or going all-out with imaginative
team themes.
 Everyone can register for the
walk at www.pinkstarwalk.co.nz.

Funding for languages

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9/11 Tauhinu Rd, Miramar.
Phone 380 8558 www.alamir.co.nz

Paul Foster-Bell, National Party
MP has said Wellington schools
are set to receive funding for Asian
languages.
Foster-Bell, says it’s important
for our next generation to be
able to communicate and work
in different languages as our
international and trading links

grow - particularly within the
Asia-Pacific region.
This funding will enable more
classes in Japanese and Mandarin
as part of the Asian Language
Learning in Schools fund.
“Our local schools are among
22 groups of 129 schools which
have received funding from the

first round of the $10 million
contestable fund over three years.
The aim of the fund is to increase
the provision of Asian languages
in our schools. It’s great to see
our local schools will be working
together to enhance the way their
students learn and develop their
language skills,” says Foster-Bell.

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New Zealand Post has this week
launched a new web-based app that lets
customers book urgent parcel deliveries
from their smartphones.
The app which is called At Pace is
targeted at tradespeople who may need
supplies delivered at short notice.
New Zealand Post General Manager
for At Pace Michael Stewart says the
newest addition to Courier Post’s express
courier service is about saving small
businesses time and money.
“Our At Pace couriers do the legwork
so project managers and their teams

don’t have to lay down their tools and
head off site every time an urgent supply
issue arises. To make an order customers
key in a few basic details. This includes
pick up and drop off points and their
preferred speed of service, which determines the cost,” Michael Stewart says.
PLS Consulting Project Manager Phil
Stewart has been using At Pace and
commented that
“Rather than sending one of my guys
off-site I use At Pace. It means supply issues don’t have to disrupt our day, and the
team is on the job, in front of the client all
day. I’ve added all my regular suppliers
to the app and they’re impressed with the

speed and efficiency of the service. I’ve
recommended it to other builders and my
architect is on board as well.”
New Zealand Post say they developed
the app with small businesses in mind.
“We know that there are around 28,000
trade businesses across the country, more
than half of which employ fewer than
five staff. These teams don’t always have
access to printers and personal assistants
so it was about designing a service that
delivers supplies urgently, without a ton
of administration,” says Mr Stewart.
 For more on the app check out www.
at-pace.nz.

Girls to lead the way at
GirlGuiding New Zealand
GirlGuiding New Zealand is determined
to shake-up and transform the organisation
into one led by its girl members.
National President Sonia Faulkner told
the organisation’s annual National Conference that the Board would work with
members to transform GirlGuiding into a
“girl-led” movement relevant in the lives
of modern Kiwi girls.
“It’s time we allowed the girls to lead
the way. We will move from being a
girl-focused organisation to one which
is girl-led, where girls confidently and
knowledgeably speak out on issues
important and relevant to them.”

As is the case with similar movements
worldwide, numbers of girls have been
on the decline. GirlGuiding New Zealand
currently has a national girl membership of
approximately 9,000, down from 12,000 in
2008. The ambition is to push membership
back up to 15,000 or more by 2020.
“Volunteers and management will be
there to support and facilitate the things
the girls want to do, rather than setting
out how everything should be done. This
will let the girls get on with experiencing
all the great things that GirlGuiding offers - learning, adventures, camaraderie
and community spirit.”

All about the food
Tandoori Heritage in Kilbirnie have
a strong ‘family focus’ and have been
operating in Wellington for almost 25
years now. No small feat for an Indian
Restaurant in the capital. Almost a
quarter of a century on and Tandoori
Heritage are still dishing up the finest
Indian delicacies, a testament to their
culinary talents.
The restaurant is owned and operated by Preetam Kalsi and his wife Mrs

Sarb Kaur who pride themselves on
“delivering the customer real authentic
Indian food and an exceptional dining
experience to the local people of Wellington.”
Preetam is also the head chef and
says Tandoori Heritage is “all about the
food. Tandoori Heritage is a reflection
of Punjabi culture and traditions with
authentic Punjabi ambiance.”
This week the restaurant is bringing

back a local favourite - their lunch and
dinner packages, and there are also
lunch and dinner specials on offer.
Plus keep an eye out for upcoming
store renovations.
 Find Tandoori Heritage at 23
Coutts Street, Kilbirnie; phone them
on (04) 387 7040. Online ordering
services available, so see their website for more details www.tandooriheritage.com.

Spring Specials
MOTHERS/DAUGHTERS FAMILY FIT KARATE:

Patricia welcomes all mothers/daughters to our new
12 years + karate classes! Are you wanting to get fit &
flexible, learn self defence and have some fun! Come
to a family friendly free karate class in September and
grab our opening special for Sept to Dec 2015

Time flies
when
you are
restoring
smiles
Kilbirnie Dentists have been at
the heart of the community since
2012 when Dr Tiff Logan took over
the reins at number 62 Rongotai
Road. The team strives to provide
the highest quality of care for their
patients in a comfortable and friendly
atmosphere. At Kilbirnie Dentists
the staff prides themselves on their
professionalism.
In November of this year Kilbirnie
Dentists will be celebrating three
years in business providing general
dentistry to the local community,

and want to mark the occasion by
urging people to look after their teeth,
and their overall dental health. The
practice is conveniently located in Kilbirnie, so Dr Logan and her staff urge
people to ‘go local’ when it comes to
booking their next appointment.
Kilbirnie Dentists always welcome
new patients for all types of dentistry.
From restorative dentistry to hygiene, cosmetic, root canal treatment and extractions, and of course
emergency appointments available
daily, Kilbirnie Dentists have got you

 For more information or to
contact the team phone 387 9392
or visit their website www.kilbirniedentists.co.nz. The Kilbirnie
Dentists website provides lots of
information about the services
offered.

Fantastic results with pigmentation
after only one treatment.
See us to get a beautiful face, neck and
décolletage for summer!

Call us to
make an
appointment

Kilbirnie
Dentists
62 Rongotai Road

For all your beauty needs...
Phone: 939 6766
32 BAY ROAD, KILBIRNIE

Ph: 387 9392 or
027 774 4755
www.kilbirniedentists.co.nz

10 Thursday September 3, 2015

readers have their say... Find out the WORD on the Street.

Question: Do you think there are good prospects for students in
Wellington once they graduate?

Amina Hassana,
Newtown
“They should get a job
as soon as possible.
Studying is not easy so
as a society we should
try to make them
happy as they have
studied for a long time
at university.”

Adrian Rosales,
Kilbirnie
“No, the search is
difficult. But if they can’t
find a job they could do
a masters to gain more
knowledge.”

Rauben Batibuka,
Lyall Bay
“It’s hard to get a job as
it is really competitive.”

Lesley Johnson,
Lyall Bay
“I am hoping so as my children
are at school. I say that the
more education you can get
the more opportunities will be
available. But students have
to plan ahead on what careers
they would like, instead of
deciding then, as it is about
what careers are available.”

Daniel Du Plessis,
Miramar
“Yes, because there is
fairly low employment
rates compared to other
countries.”

Paula Smith,
Kilbirnie
“I am thinking that my
children will have to be at
the top of their class and
get top grades to stand a
chance. It is difficult to get
a job, so if they want one
they might have to travel
outside of Wellington.”

LETTERS to the editor
Cycleway safety questions raised

Bringing seismic engineering into disrepute

Dear Ed, It really concerns me
that those who advocate for the
kerbside cycleway option assume
that these cycle paths will provide “safe passage” for children
and those not so experienced in
cycling. This is not so and I worry
that parents and children alike
will believe that it is their right
to use these lanes and that they

Dear Ed, the second opinion on St
Gerard’s ‘risk’ makes me wonder it the
seismic engineer who was responsible
for the higher risk assessment should
be honoured for his prudence or
castrated for his scaremongery.
Whichever way it brings seismic
engineering into disrepute and civil
defence preparation farcical.
Paul Franken, Strathmore Park

will be automatically safe.
One has to wonder just how
safe Liz Springford (August
27) will be once she leaves the
relative safety of The Parade
and ventures into Berhampore
and beyond?
The logic just doesn’t stack up
Geena Ross
Brooklyn

Basin Reserve flyover
Dear Ed, You invited feedback
on what your readers think
about the High Court decision,
dismissing an appeal against
the decision on the controversial
Basin Reserve flyover.
At one level we are extremely
disappointed. However, we
haven't heard all the pros and
cons concerning this issue and
respect the legal opinion of the
High Court.
That said, the problem remains,
i.e. traffic congestion from the
eastern suburbs is increasing
and will do for the foreseeable
future. As a matter of urgency,
the solution is to build the second
Terrace Tunnel (which should
have been done decades ago)
and complete the motorway to
the airport. We need a second
Mt Victoria tunnel parallel to
the existing one. But if a flyover
cannot be built past the Basin
Reserve, what is the alternative?
A longer, deeper tunnel? That
doesn't make much sense, as
the route would surely be more
intrusive to pass by the Basin
Reserve. In general, tunnelling
is certainly to be preferred over
flyovers, wherever possible, but
in this instance it appears logistically impossible.
It seems to us that the objectors

to the flyover should have been
compelled to come up with a
workable solution, and not to
leave us stuck with the status
quo. While we can sympathise
with those who keep pushing for
better public-transport systems,
surely it is not as simple as
either/or, but both/and. The fact
is, population will increase and
personal mobility will always be
required and desired.
Objectors to the previous plan
used emotive language like "ugly
flyover", but that is childish and
unhelpful. A flyover doesn't have
to be ugly. I think of those in
Singapore, for example, which
look elegant and have become
"greened over" by tropical vegetation. It's all in the design. And
noise can be controlled as well.
So what's going to happen? Why
is it that it takes forever to get
things done in New Zealand? We
take decades to make decisions,
and when we finally decide what
to do we take double or treble
the time it would take in the US
or Europe to complete the same
job - or we do it on the cheap and
end up with a half solution (like
the existing Terrace Tunnel with
traffic in both directions). Sigh!
Dr and Mrs Dennis P Gordon
Hataitai

SECOND OPINION:
St Gerard’s Church
and Monastery in
Mount Victoria had
been yellow stickered and owners
were told it would
cost $10 million to
quake strengthen,
however they are
having a second
report prepared.

Island Bay cyclist
Dear Ed, Liz Springford
(Aug.27th) is upset that a car
passed her with less than the
1.5m gap. Has she never travelled down between 2 lanes of
cars whereby her pedals are
almost scratching along the
cars to get to the front of the
queue.
Has she never gone into the
incorrect lane marked to go in
a different direction than where
she wants to go, just to get to
the front of the queue.
Today on where I had to
slow down for traffic entering
the roundabout and a cyclist
passes me on my left hand side.
Cars are not allowed to do that
within the city limits, and very
dangerous as I am concentrating on cars on the roundabout.
C ycl ist s t ravel l i ng t wo

abreast around the bay's or
on other narrow roads, where
the Road code is "Slow traffic
pulls over". Cyclists are traffic,
cyclists should therefore pull
over and let the faster travelling vehicles pass, instead of
staying in the middle of the
road. That applies to cyclists,
motorcyclists, and those people
who drive those putt putt motor
mowers, that can barely make it
up the Wellington hills.
I am fed up with whinging
cyclists who daily break the
law, going through red lights,
never indicating, travelling
in the wrong lane, ie passing
cars going down Adelaide
Rd towards John Street and
they are in the right hand lane.
I rang the Police about one
cyclist who was going to report

me as he pushed in between
myself and the car in front of
me, and travelling in that lane
which is as an example, is
against the law.
I am on the road very early in
the mornings and in the evenings, and the cyclists which
are out at that time frequently
are dressed in dark clothing,
without any form of reflector
or light on the cycle.
They are of the same mentality of those driving cars who
turn their lights off as soon as
there is a glimmer of light in
the sky. Lights are for vehicles
to be seen, not the driver to see.
All comes down to common
sense.
Heather Bevan
Island Bay

Basin flyover

Flyover fury

Dear Ed, Once again a shortsighted
decision by the cities greenies.
When are they going to realise that
we need the infrastructure to make our
city a more green friendly place to live.
You need good roads for decent
public transport and green initiatives.
Mike McFarlane

Dear Ed, I think its sucks because the traffic problems
are terrible especially in the weekend. The traffic is like
peak hour traffic during the week.
From what I saw from the pictures of the plans it didn't
look ugly at all I thought the way it was done I thought it
look better than what does now. The traffic in wellington
is like a nightmare.
Diane Cameron

Newtown Community Centre
hosted the play ‘We'll Meet Again'
on Sunday. Twenty years ago a
young Otago University student
interviewed rest home veterans
and turned their stories into a play
to tour the South Island.
Twenty years on, that same
student-turned-teacher-turnedMasters-student Tama Smith has,
with the rest home’s permission
and along with a new set of actors,
rekindled the play.
The script of ‘We’ll Meet Again’
is based on stories the Montecillo
Veterans Home, Dunedin, veterans shared with Tama.
The stories the actors performed
are a mix from the veterans Tama

met, but “It is not only one person’s
story,” says Tama, who is the
director of the play.
The play shares humour, songs,
stories and the lives of those veterans whose common experience
was World War II.
Tama is driven to share stories
from the elderly in a theatrical
way and he hopes the audience’s
own lives will be enriched through
hearing those stories.
Sadly none of the veterans Tama
interviewed are still alive. However, the veterans’ stories are kept
alive in ‘We’ll Meet Again’.
Tama would like to collect more
stories from the elderly. He would
also like the easily transportable
play performed in other centres
in the future.

The play is a collaboration between Victoria University and Toi
Whakaari New Zealand Drama
School. The show, full of humour
and song, recounts growing up,
schooling, work and war service,
friendships, love, grief, and loss,
raising families, retirement and
being part of an elderly community.
Refreshingly and generously,
the play was free of charge. The
only catch being the actors and
students wanted feedback from
the audience at the end of the play.
 If anyone is interested in community theatre or advocating for
stories from the elderly being
theatricalised, contact Tama on tel:
021 711 414.

LETTERS to the editor
Not looking forward to kerbside Cycleway
Dear Ed, That’s great that Liz
Springford’s (27 August) looking forward to biking along the
proposed kerbside cycleway on
The Parade. I’d have to say she’d
be one of the vocal few who thinks
this is a “good” idea!

She claims that “on just one
ride” on the current cycleway
“somebody opened their car door
in front of her, a bus driver attempted to pass her at a pedestrian
pinch point, and another car driver
passed her with a lot less than the

recommended 1.5 metre gap”.
This sounds like it’s too horrific to
be true and just a tad convenient
to promote the need for a new
cycleway.
From what Liz describes the
journey must have been a “har-

rowing experience” but having
cycled around this very area for
years I have seriously never experienced or witnessed anything like
the behaviour she describes. The
Parade is a known cyclist friendly
area so maybe Ms Springford

should review her cycling skills
perhaps?
I believe this concept to be seriously flawed for safety reasons for
all road users including cyclists!
Eleanor Beach
Owhiro Bay

Kilmarnock Heights Home
Kilmarnock Heights Home is vibrant, welcoming and inviting from
the moment you walk through the door. Here, you’ll be supported
to maintain your independence and continue with your hobbies,
interests and passions.
A highlight for many residents is the social life - as well as enjoying the
company of others at a similar stage of life, residents get involved in
organising daily happenings and special events.
At Kilmarnock Heights Home we can offer rest home care and short
term respite, as well as a day guest programme for people living in the
community.
Call Kilmarnock Heights Home on (04) 380 2034 to find out more.

*The weekly payments are based on the all-new 2015 Tritons including ORC of $1250 with no deposit, 48 months term with a 35% ﬁnal payment at an
interest rate of 9.25% pa. Payments also include establishment fee and PPSR charges of $390. The total amount payable under the agreement amounts to
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When school finishes up, and university, apprenticeship or work are calling
your name sometimes people find themselves not quite ready to take the leap.
That’s how Shane Parish felt anyway, he
wanted to take some time before making
any big life decisions so decided to take
a year out and travel.
Shane was living in Wellington but
is currently using his break wisely by
working at a Summer Camp in the USA
before he embarks on another OE or gap
year adventure in Canada.
Shane works as a Hiking Instructor and
Ropes Counsellor at a girls Jewish camp
in Sebago Lake, Main in the USA. When
he’s not at work Shane says he’s findings
adventures at theme parks, doing a ‘Sky
Swing’ or road tripping to Montreal for
a few days with his work mates. "We
went down to Boston to watch a Red Sox
game, hired a pontoon boat and went
cliff jumping, and went out shopping
at a very large outlet shopping centre,"
says Shane.
But it seems The American Dream
wasn’t enough, so Shane has decided that
after camp he’ll head for the Canadian
slopes to satisfy his wanderlust.
Throughout the process, and for the
Canadian leg of his trip, IEP have helped

sort him out with his visas, country
support and job placement. IEP New
Zealand is part of a worldwide network
of companies focused on helping people
have amazing overseas work and volunteer abroad experiences. Shane says he
felt really supported by IEP who helped
arrange his flights, job and visa to both
the USA and Canada.
Shane plans to head to Canada and get
a job at one of the ski resorts. Perfect
timing as their winter kicks in just as
camp finishes, not a bad series of events.
If there is one piece of advice Shane can
give anyone wanting to do camp is just
“do it, you won’t regret it for a second.
People go travelling all over the US
afterwards and you will have contacts
from various countries - so plenty of
couches to crash on. The friendships
you make will last a long time. Travel
definitely broadens the mind and lets
your see the world.”
 The Summer Camp Roadshow hits
the Abel Tasman Hotel Wellington on
Wednesday, September 9 at 6.00 pm if
you want to find out further information about the programme and want
to make like Shane and head stateside.
For more details visit www.iep.org.nz
or email news@iep.org.nz or phone
0800 443 769.

Public Notice

Got a
story?

WELLINGTON CHINESE
BAPTIST CHURCH

NT
WE WA IT!!
R
TO HEA

FOOD FAIR
Notice

Fundraising

Our church is holding a fundraising
food fair on the 12th September
(Saturday) in our premises.
There will be authentic Chinese food,
cakes and biscuits on sale.

Phone

Fiona Donellan on

(04) 587 1660

Please come and enjoy this fantastic
culinary experience.

24 Donald McLean Street,
Newtown 6021, Wellington.

Prayer to
St Jude
O HOLY St Jude, Apostle, &
Martyr, great in virtues and
rich in miracles, near kinsmen
of Jesus Christ, faithful intercessor of all who invoke your
special patronage in time of
needs. To you I have recourse
from the depth of my heart
and humbly beg to whom God
has given such great power to
come to my assistance. Help
me in my urgent petition
(make your request). In return
I promise to make your name
known and cause you to be
invoked. (Say) 3 Our Fathers,
3 Hail Mary’s & 3 The Gloria’s.
Saint Jude pray for me and all
who invoke your aid Amen.
Regina

For all your residential electrical needs,
from repairs to design to installation.

Free quotes, no job too big or small.
Contact the team at
Stewart and Rogers on

0800 800 949
or book a job online at

www.stewartrogers.co.nz
Call us now!

Situations Vacant
44035

RED HOT AMERICAN SUMMER: Shane Parish from Lower Hutt at Summer Camp in the
USA before heading to Canada for the next stage of his adventure PHOTO: Supplied

13

Childcare position
Looking for someone
to come to our Hataitai
home in the mornings and
supervise my 12 year old
daughter and young puppy,
6.30 - 8.30am 5 days a
week price negotiable,
needs to have car to do a
school drop off!
0212880401

Casual vacancy for an
Elected Trustee
A casual vacancy has occurred on the Board of
Trustees for an Elected parent representative.
The board has resolved under section 105 of
the Education Act 1989 to fill the vacancy by
selection.

If ten percent or more of eligible voters on the
school roll ask the Board, within 28 days of this
notice being published, to hold a By-election to
fill the vacancy, then a by-election will be held.
Any eligible voter who wishes to ask the board
to hold a by-election should write to:
Chairperson, Board of Trustees
St Catherine’s College, P.O.Box 14076
Kilbirnie, Wellington 6022
By 1 October 2015

14 Thursday September 3, 2015

MINUTES WITH:
Jeremy Buckley

Manager REAL SURF Lyall Bay
What would Cook Strait
News readers be shocked
to know about you?
Well, maybe people
that know me would be
surprised that despite
all my complaints about
Wellington RE Weather
wind etc. I do really love it
here.

What’s one thing that
you’ll never throw away?
Ha, there are lots of things
I should and too many I
won’t to name.

Who is one person,
dead or alive, you
would love to have
a meal with?

What makes you
smile?
The Sun.

My lovely girlfriend
of course.

What is your guilty
TV pleasure?
Those silly home
renovation shows,
I can’t stop watching
them.

Who are you inspired by?

What was your best
ever holiday?

Anyone who does well in
life without trampling over
others to get there. (rare)

Surfing in Indonesia
in 1997.

What would you
spend your last
$100 on?
Food and a beer with
family / friends or in
reality probably have
to pay a bill with it.

What’s next on
your wish list?
Really would love
to have a holiday
somewhere very
tropical very soon.

Have you got an anonymous THUMBS UP or THUMBS DOWN
to share? email to news@wsn.co.nz or Text to 022 322 4811
THUMBS UP to an amazing teacher
at South Wellington Intermediate
School – I always see bright, happy
students, but on Thursday afternoon they were out on the back
field playing Quidditch – triple
rings at each end and charging
up and down on an assortment of
brooms with beaters and blockers
as per Hogwarts tradition.

THUMBS UP to the Lux Festival
in Wellington. A good family
night out enjoyed by all.
THUMBS UP to Mary, an ex
‘fatso’ for losing 26 kilograms
in just six months and keeping
it off. Well done, you are an
inspiration to many!
THUMBS DOWN to negativity!
THUMBS UP to my recent holiday to Seatoun to visit family.
Had only been to Wellington
once before and was delighted
to discover this seaside gem.
Will definitely be back!

C R O S S W O R D Puzzle
CROSSWORD
CROSSWORD

THUMBS DOWN to the main
story on Stuff being about
David Cameron eating Pringles
in cattle class. Seriously??

THUMBS DOWN to wasting
$26 million on a vanity project
like changing the flag. If it aint
broke, don’t fix it.

THUMBS DOWN to Mel Gibson for allegedly pushing and
verbally attacking a photographer in Sydney.

THUMBS DOWN to Sam Duff
leaving the Cook Strait News

THUMBS UP to Stan Andis
from Strathmore who is a true
local hero. Was chuffed to read
about your award in the Cook
Strait News Stan!

THUMBS DOWN to the old white
bearded man for leaving his KFC wrappers on Lyall Bay beach. Not to worry
though old fella, we cleaned up your
litter for you.

 Cook Strait News welcomes
the public to submit any
THUMBS UP, THUMBS DOWN
comments to 022 322 4811 or
news@wsn.co.nz. We reserve
the right not to publish any
malicious or ill-spirited entries. Keep it friendly guys!

Making a
splash at
national comp
A group of local divers
has brought back a collection of medals from the
Diving New Zealand National Championships in
Auckland.
11 divers from the Wellington Diving Club, aged
between 11 and 22, brought
home a total of 28 medals
(12 gold, 10 silver and 6
bronze) from the competition.
The medal total made the
Wellington Diving Club the
highest achieving club in
New Zealand.
To compete in the event,
divers had to achieve qualifying scores in local, regional and national events
dur ing the competition
season leading up to the
National Championships.
Wellington Diving Club
head coach James Hardaker
also won the prestigious

Diving New Zealand Coach
of the Year award.
James says that Wellington
Diving Club divers put in
some great performances
at Nationals, winning medals, titles, breaking records
and bringing home many
trophies.
“Wellington Diving Club
has been the biggest and
most successful team for
many years,” he says.
“We look forward to our
divers continuing to do well
in upcoming national and
international events.”
Rongotai College student
Anton Jenkins broke the
New Zealand record for the
boys 16 to 18 age group in
the three metre springboard
and was awarded the Benson Cup for Best Male Age
Group Diver.
Anton was also awarded
the Peter Thompson Trophy

for the highest score for
his first five dives in three
metre.
Female diver Yu Qian Goh,
was awarded the Waikato
Cup for the highest scoring
Women’s Open Dive.
She also broke two New
Zealand records for the Age
Group and Women’s Open
Synchronised three metre
events together with Auckland based diver, Lizzie Cui.
Anton and Yu Qian also
competed in a Mixed Synchronised three metre event
and won gold.
They both qualified for
the Oceania Championships
in December to be held in
Melbourne.

SPLASH: Rongotai College student
Anton Jenkins competes in the recent Diving New Zealand National
Championships in Auckland.

SEATOUN SCALLY WAGS: The Seatoun team ready for action at the starting line for one of their
Dodgeball game.

It’s all about fun on
the Dodgeball court
By James Baker

There were few rules and
loads of fun at the dodgeball
in the first Wellington Regional Sportsfest last week.
Dodgeball was one of 10
sports at the event staged at
venues across the city.
While not as well-known as
basketball or rugby, dodgeball
provides a great introduction to sport, says Caroline
Newman, mum and team
organiser for the Seatoun
Scally Wags .
“I don’t think there are any
special skills required. If you

can throw a ball that’s great.”
She says dodgeball allows
kids to play who might not
otherwise enjoy sport.
“Even the kids who aren’t
very good can play.”
Dodgeball involves two
teams who try to eliminate
the other players by hitting
them with balls and catching
the balls thrown at them.
“It’s a sport I really know
and like, and the boys can
play with the girls,” says
Amelia Newman, 9.
And did they enjoy the day?
“I really liked playing because we won and last time

we didn’t win, says Emma
Groombridge, 9.
Carolyn Newman likes the
Sportsfest idea.
“This is their first festival
of sports day, and I think it’s
fantastic, it’s been a great
success”
Wellington Regional Sportsfest 2015 is a two day event
organised by Wellington city
council in partnership with
nine regional sports organisations and Primary Sports
Wellington.
It involves 50 schools, 260,
teams and 2200 children from
years 5 to 8.

More than 2000 kids, in 263
teams, from 50 schools, across 10
sports converged on sports venues
this week for the Wellington Regional SportsFest.
The inaugural event was a partnership between Wellington City
Council, Primary Sport Wellington
and the Health Promotion Agency.
The events organisation was
driven by the council’s new customer and community partnership
team.
The unit was formed to help build
relationships with communities
and to help the council’s sports
facilities engage with schools and
community groups.
Event organiser Elspeth McMillan said that a main focus of the
event was getting across the health
and wellbeing message.
A 2012/13 New Zealand Health
Survey found 11% of children
were obese and 22% children were

overweight, and there has been a
push for councils to do more to
fight childhood obesity.
ASB Sports Centre in Rongotai
hosted most of the sports.
Centre manager Mornay Loubser
said there was a focus on getting
communities to become more
active.
He said that events like Sportsfest
can be the “little spark” that gets
children moving again.
“It’s about trying to activate our
communities to be more active,
more often,” Mr Loubser says.
“We want to try and get our communities to push play. Certainly we
want to get our communities off
those couches.”
Ms McMillan says the organising
team is hoping to run the event
again.
“All the anecdotal feedback we’ve
had is that the kids are loving it. We
would like to do it again. That’s
the plan, that we would make it an
annual event.”

15

16 Thursday September 3, 2015

OUT&ABOUT

GOODBYE
WINTER

GOOD
READ:
Eilish is on
the newspaper run
to go grab a
copy of the
Cook Strait
Newspaper.

FLYING HIGH: Cary and Ben are enjoying swinging high to the sky.
SQUEAKY CLEAN: Jason is working hard at
keeping Kilbirnie clean by removing unwanted
graffiti on the wall.

HOME TIME: It’s time for Louise to bike back
home to Miramar.

COMFORT: Beverly is having a lovely
browse at the colourful mats after a
painful visit to the dentist.

PIT STOP: Mark and Silvia are catching the last of the sun whilst munching on
some gorgeous food.

SLEEPY: Ahahera is enjoying the sunshine whilst
her daughter Marcina is fast asleep.

TOO GOOD TO MISS
SOUTH WELLINGTON INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL
“Challenge, Engage, Inquire, Inspire”
Prospective students and their parents
are invited to our

Open Evening

Why South Wellington
Intermediate School

Tuesday 22nd September
6:00pm
Prospective students are invited to attend

Open Days

Wednesday 21 and 28 October
9:30am for entrance testing followed by
time spent in a variety of classes.

At South Wellington Intermediate we don’t see these two years as solely
a time to prepare students for High School, but rather see it as a unique
and special time where the journey into adolescence is valued. Students
are supported to become independent learners, thinkers and actors,
and the apron strings of Primary school are loosened to allow greater
autonomy, exploration, inspiration and self management. We can’t wait to
share the next two years of your child’s learning journey with you.